Automatic pit gate and operating means therefor



Dec. 13, 1932. J, D E L 1,890,905

AUTOMATICPIT GATE AND OPERATING MEANS THEREFOR Filed June 26. 1930 fizz/6W6 Jacalewa's 600d W M6712 @6607 2:

Patented Dec. 13, 1932 are" stares JACOB LEWIS coon ,AN 'WALTEB 1n. CLICK, on ELKHART, INDIANA, AssIGNoRs o THE PATENT orrics eonrnnrconvnyoa 00., or nLxnAn-tr, INDIANA, A CORPORATION, or rnnmmt AUTOMATIC PIT GATE AND OPERATING MEANS THEREFOR Application-filed .Tune 26, 1930. Serial No. 463,871.

()ur inventi'onrelates to an automatic pit gateand operating means therefor, and has particularrcference to a gate adapted to operate. automatically whereby a hoisting skip or bucket is automatically filled with lading, such as coal or the like, when lowered into a hoisting pit.

Inthe handling of various kinds of material, and particularly with respect to the handling of coal, it has become common practice to store the coal in bins of silo-like formation, which are open at the top and into which the coal is delivered by suitable hoisting mechanism. It is desirable ,in the handling of coal that the operations be conducted as rapidly as possible and yet with a gentle and smoothaction of the filling and dumping apparatus in order that breakage of the coal be eliminated. f p

The railwaycars used in the handling of coal are nearly all equipped with bottom dump doors so that the lading of the car is discharged from the bottom of the cars into aloading pit or hopper usually provided below the level ofthe ground and under the tracks which support the car while it is being unloaded. These loading pits are preferably somewhat narrow and of less length than the length ofthe railway car, and comprise a hopper portion with sloping bottoms so that material dropped into the hopper automatically flows from the hopper by means of gravwhen the hopper doors are open. A pit for receiving a skip orbucketis provided alongside the hopper. and heretofore it has been the practice to control the flow of material out ofthe hopoer into the buckets by into the loading pit alongside a receiving hopper, such as described above.

A further object of our invention is the provision of a pit gate wh1ch requires no attention on thepart of the operator and which .is so controlled that upon the bucket or. skip reaching the bottom of the loading chute, the gate is turned into position so that the lading flows freely from the hopper into the bucket. The angle of the gate when in lowered position is such that material such as coal or the like, fills the bucket and the mav terial upon reaching its angle of repose automatically stops flowmg so that'the bucket upon reaching the bottom of the loading chute becomes filled very quickly and is ready the lading before it- 'has reached the bottom of the pit, this initial lading being caused to flow into the bucket very gently and along the sides of the bucket-so that breakage is avoided. I

These and other obiects of our invention will be more fully and better understood by reference to the accompanying sheet of drawing in which the figure .is a side elevational view illustrating our invention.

Referring now specifically to the drawing and in which like reference characters refer.

to like parts throughout, the bottom wall 10 of the receiving hopper is shown. a portion of which is angularly disposed and which is joined to the side wall 11 of the receiving hopper. the wall 11 extending up to the ground level 12, the walls 10 and 11 of the. receiving hopper and the loading pit being. below the ground level. A discharge opening' 13 is provided through the wall 11 around which a door frame 14 extends in the usual manner, and which is bolted or otherwise fastened to the side wall 11 of the hopper. A stationary chute 15 is attached to the frame 14 in any approved manner, this chute being Cit approximately the same size as the opening 13 and in register therewith and projects outward and downward from the wall 11 of the hopper.

, A knife gate 16 is provided which is suitably mounted in the frame 14 and has an angle iron 17 secured thereto through which a rod 18 extends, with threaded members 19 being mounted on the rod 18 on each side of the angle 17. The rod 18 extends upward and has a crank 20 on the outer end thereof with a bracket 21 being provided which is attached to the member 12 at the ground level of the pit and by means ofwhich the door 16 is opened and closed, or partially opened, as may be desired.

The loading pit proper, designated as a whole as 22, is shown at the side of the receiving hopper, and has a pair of pit bucket guides 23 mounted therein and angularly disposed with respect to the perpendicular of the pit 22. Pivotally mounted to the side Walls of the chute 15 by means of bolts or lugs, is a pair of fulcrum arms 24, these arms being in spaced relation with each other, and are outside of the walls of the chute 15 and are in alignment with the pit bucket guides 23. Attached to each of the fulcrum arms 24 near the outer ends thereof by means of an eye 25, is a pair of cables 26 having counterweights 27 at the opposite ends thereof, these counterweights being of sufficient weightto balance the fulcrum arms and the gate hereinafter described, together with whatever lacling may rest against the gate after the bucket is filled. The cables pass upward over pulleys 28 secured to the door frame 14 and thence downward over other pulleys 29 secured to the bottom of the chute 15, so that the weights 27 are below the loading apparatus and travel towards and away from the bottom of the pit.

Attached to the bottom of the chute 15 at the outer edge thereof, is a shaft 30 upon which a pit gate 31. is mounted, this pit gate having a pair of side members and a bottom member, and is open at each of its ends to allow the lading to flow therethrough. A pair 24 have lugs 33 positioned thereon, with rollers 34 mounted therein which engage upon the tracks 32 at the bottom of the pit gate A leading bucket or skip 35 is shown having a pair of trunnions 36 at its outer sides upon which rollers 360*. are mounted, and which are adapted to engage on the pit bucket guides 23 as the bucket is lowered into and raised out of the loading pit 22. At the outer ends of the fulcrum arms 24 is a pair of members 37, these members being on the lower sides of the fulcrum arms 24 and adapted to engage the trunnions 36 on the bucket 35 as it is lowered into the loading pit 22. At the upper sides of the fulcrum arms 24 is a pair of by-pass members 38 which are slidably mounted in guides 39 secured to the top of the fulcrum arms 24 and retained in normal extended position by means of springs 40, which are secured to members 41 on the rear ends of the members 38 and to hooks 42 mounted on the guides 39. The members 37 are adjustably mounted on the ends of the fulcrum arms 24 so they may be properly adjusted to engage the rollers 36a on the trunnions 36 on the bucket 35 as it is lowered into the loading pit. Bumping blocks 43 are secured to the guides 23 and serve to support the bucket 35 and the outer ends of the fulcrum arms 24 while the bucket 35 is being loaded, and also serve to limit the travel of the bucket 35 downward on the skids 23. r

In operation the bucket 35, which is suspended from a cable (not shown) is lowered into the pit 22 between the pit bucket guides 23, which engage the rollers 36a on the trunnions 36 at the sides of the bucket. The direction of travel of the bucket is changed traveling downward upon the pit bucket guides 23 passes between the ends of the ful crum arms 24 and the rollers 36a normally clear the ends of the members 38 and engage the members 37 carrying the fulcrum arms 24 downward until the bucket reaches the position shown in full lines in the drawing, where the ends of the members 37 rest upon the stop blocks 43. If the weight of the chute 31 and lading resting thereagainst has caused the arms 24 to drop downward slightly from the normal clear position of the arms 24, then the rollers 36a on the trunnions 36 first engage the members 38 forcing them backward in the guides 39 and against the action of the springs 40, and pass the members 38 to engage the members 37. After the trunnions 36 pass the members 38, they are forced outward above the trunnions 36 in position to be engaged by the rollers on the trunnions when the bucket is hoisted.

In the meantime, the chute 31, by reason of gravity and the weight of the material resting upon it, is turned down into discharge position, shown in full lines, so that material automatically flows through the opening 13 out of the fixed chute 15, over the movable chute 31 and into the bucket 35. The door 16 which controls the flow of material through the opening 13, is adjusted to the proper position so that the bucket 35 becomes 3 filled when theangle of repose of the material is reached. a V

7 As soon as the bucket 35 is filled, the hoisting operation commences. WVith the lifting of the bucket 35 the fulcrum arms 24 are raised by the bucket 35 which is being hoisted out of the pit. the tracks 32, thereby lifting-"the movable chute 31 into an upwardly tilted position, and the lading' contained therein to a position shown in dotted lines in the'drawin It will be noted hat the fulcrum arms 24 are pivotally secured totheside walls of the stationary chute 15 and that the outer ends of these members travel in a circular path and are operated by the bucket 35. The member 31 is pivotally mounted on therlower outer edge of the fixed chute 15, and outward from the point of mounting for the fulcrum arms. The engagement of the fulcrum arms under the movable chute 31 is fairly close to the mounting point of the chute 31 so that a comparatively short movement of the fulcrum arms 24 results in a faster travel of the chute 31. Therefore, as the fulcrum arms 24 are raised by the bucket 35, the travel of the outer end of the member 31 is much more rapid than the fulcrum arms 24;. As the bucket is raised, the end of the member 31 is turned upward to the position shown in dotted lines and out of the path of the bucket 35. and the trunnions also pass clear of the members as where the apparatus is held by the counterweights until the bucket is again lowered into the pit.

It will be understood that a portion of the lading remains in movable chute 31, the outer end of which is raised high enough to prevent any of the material falling from this member out into the loading pit. When the bucket 35 is returned to the pit, it passes under the outer end of the member 31 and at the same time engages on the members 37 pulling the fulcrum arms 24 downward along the movable chute to drop down into discharge position. The turning of the member 31 is somewhat slow at first and the lading' resting in the bucket is discharged into the bucket 35 against the sloping sides of the bucket adjacent the chute 31 and into the bottom of the bucket 35. This flow of material commences with the turning of the movable chute 31, so that by the time the bucket The rollers3 i contact upon above is repeated with the returnof the bucket to the loading pit.

It will thus be understood that the operation of the device is entirely automatic and is accomplished by the lowering into the pit of thebucket 35 and the hoisting of the bucket out ofthe pit. The position of the door 16 is cont-rolled by the crank 20, so that a proper sized opening 13 is maintained through the wall to provide for the proper flow of t material. out of the hopper. This will depend a great deal upon the size of the pieces of material and its condition with respect to moisture and the like;

' While we have described 'more or less precisely the details of construction, we do not wish to'be understood as limiting ourmaysu'ggest or render eXpet ient without departing from the spirit or scope of our invention.

' VVeclaim:

1. In combination, a hopper having a dis chargeopening therein, a stationary chute in register wlth said openlng, a chute-pivotally mounted on the outer edge of said fixed chute, a pair of pivotally mounted fulcrum arms, curved tracks on the under side of said pivotallymounted chute, means on said fulcrum arms foren 'aging the curved tracks, and

counterweights secured to said fulcrum arms. 2. In combination, a hopper llZlVlIlQf a dischargeopening therein, a stationary chute in register with said opening, a movable chute pivotallymounted on said stationary chute, pivotally mounted fulcrum arms, trackson said movable chute, means on said fulcrum arms for engagement with said tracks, wherebythe said pivotally mounted chute is lifted by said fulcrum arms, and counterweights se-.

cured to said fulcrum arms.

'3. lncombination, a hopper having a discharge opening therein, a stationary chute in registerwith said opening, a movable chute pivotally mounted on said stationary'chute,

pivotally mounted fulcrum arms, tracks on SEUCllllOVfiblQ,ChUtG, means on said fulcrum arms for engagement with said tracks, whereby'the said pivotally mounted chute is lifted by said fulcrum arms,-and counterweights secured to" said fulcrum arms, the said track extendingparallel with the bottom of said movable chute for apart of its distanceand thence outwardly therefrom. I i l. In combination, a hopper having a discharge opening therein, a stationary chute in register with said opening, a movable chute pivotally mounted on said stationary chute, pivotally mounted fulcrum. arms, tracks on said movable chute, means on said fulcrum arms for engagement with said tracks, whereby the said pivotally mounted chute is lifted by oftld fulcrum arms, and counter-weights secured to said fulcrumarms, the said track extending parallel with the bottom of said movable chute for a part of its distance and thence outwardly therefrom at an angle of approximately 135 degrees.

5. In combination, hopper having a discharge opening therein, a stationary chute in register with said opening, a movable chute pivotally mounted. on said stationary chute, pivotally mounted fulcrum arms, tracks on said movable chute, rollers on said fulcrum arms for engagement with said tracks, whereby the said pivotally mounted chute is lifted by said fulcrum arms, counterweights secured to said fulcrum arms, and means on said fulcrum arms for engagement with a hoisting bucket.

6. In combination, a hopper having a discharge opening therein, a stationary chute in register with said opening, a movable chute pivotally mounted on said stationary chute, pivotally mounted fulcrum arms, tracks on said movable chute, rollers on said fulcrum arms for engagement with said tracks, whereby the said pivotally mounted chute is lifted by the upward movement of the fulcrumarms, counterweights secured to said fulcrum arms, and adjustable means on said fulcrum arms for engagement with a hoisting bucket.

7. In combination, a hopper having a discharge opening therein, a fixed chute secured to said hopper in register with said discharge opening, a movable chute pivotally mounted to said fixed chute, fulcrum arms pivotally secured to said fixed chute, counterweights attached to said fulcrum arms, means on said fulcrum arms for engagement with said movable chute, an adjustable mem her on the outer end of said fulcrum arms on the lower side thereof, and a spring-controlled member on the upper side of said fulcrum arms 011 the outer end thereof.

8. In combination, a hopper having a discharge opening therein, a fixed chute secured to said hopper in register with said discharge opening, a movable chute pivotally mounted to said fixed chute, fulcrum arms pivotally secured to said fixed chute, counterweights attached to said fulcrum arms, means on said fulcrum arms for engagement with said movable chute, a plurality of members on the outer ends of said fulcrum arms adapted to engage the trunnions of a bucket, the upper pair of said members being slidably mounted, and springs adapted to force said upper pair of members in normally extended position.

9. In combination, a hopper having a discharge opening, a door mounted adjacent said opening, a fixed chute secured to the said hopper in register with said opening, a movably mounted chute secured to the lower forward edge of said fixed chute, tracks on said chute extending outwardly therefrom, a pair of fulcrum arms, means on said arms of June, 1930.

JACOB LEWIS GOOD. WALTER E. CLICK. 

